Duck Daydreams

Waterfronts

Florida's duck season opens Nov. 17, and to diehard waterfowlers it can't get here soon enough.

They look forward to going into the Everglades before dawn, standing in the water and, as the first rays of the rising sun peek over the horizon, having ducks try to land in their decoy spread.

"There's absolutely nothing better than a decoying duck," Jason Maret said. "For me, what I like about duck hunting is the camaraderie you have with the people you meet, the preparation and just being dedicated to getting up early and doing what you love."

The time spent with others in a duck blind is a big part of hunting ducks.

Unlike hunting deer, which is usually a solitary pursuit, hunting ducks almost always involves two or more hunters. When the birds are working, hunters work together to maximize their chances of getting a shot. When the ducks aren't flying, conversation is often about past hunts.

"Probably the biggest thing that appeals to me about duck hunting is just the memories that I have," Jose "Pepi" Vidal said. "I've been hunting since I was 5 years old with my father. He used to take me and my brother to Lake Trafford and we'd camp every weekend and hunt out of his 12-foot johnboat. Whenever I hunt, it brings back those memories.

"I wouldn't trade for anything the memories that I have and the friendships I've made while duck hunting."

The first chance to make new memories is during the first phase of the 60-day season, which is Nov. 17-25. The second phase is Dec. 8-Jan. 27.

Vidal, 36, of Miami, takes off from work the week of the first phase so he can hunt every day. The first two days he'll be hunting out of his airboat in the Everglades with his brother and his father, who is 60.

"He took us and did everything. Now it's the other way around. We take him hunting," Vidal said.

Maret, 33, of Sunrise, started hunting ducks about five years ago. His first hunt was with his friend Eddie Wheeler out of Everglades Holiday Park.

"We shot our limit of ringers," Maret said. "If I remember right, I don't think I hit a single duck."

But Maret was hooked. Now he hunts ducks all over the country - he recently returned from hunting ducks, geese and pheasants in North Dakota - but the Everglades and ring-necked ducks remain among his favorites. What he likes best is to find a spot where the ringers come right into his decoys.

"I'll take two ducks decoying versus a limit of ducks pass shooting," Maret said. "I'm not a real numbers guy, I'm a quality guy. I rather shoot one or two ducks in a spot I scouted and with my friends rather than shoot a limit pass-shooting at an STA with two people I don't really care for."

Maret often hunts with Brian Sanders of Davie in the Everglades and occasionally at the stormwater treatment areas. Maret, who used to captain private sportfishing boats and Sanders, who guides anglers out of Chokoloskee Island, used to occasionally fish together.

"Basically all the people I know who like to hunt are all avid fishermen," Sanders said. "There's a lot of strategy involved with duck hunting. It kind of goes hand in hand with fishing. Plus, after eight months of hot weather, it's a good change of pace to get out in the cool weather and hunt."

Maret, Sanders and Vidal have been scouting for ducks to get a general idea of where they'll be come opening day.

Recent cold fronts should push even more ducks into South Florida, which bodes well for the opener. But you can't expect to simply go out in the 'Glades on opening day and have ducks land in your decoys.

"Do your scouting," Vidal said. "You can't just go out there blind. If you don't know where the ducks are at, it's going to be tough. There's too much water out there. After every hunt, if I'm not in a hurry, I'll scout some more."

When the ducks are using an area, you want to be set up correctly. To Maret and Vidal, that means hiding your boat in a clump of vegetation and getting in the water.

"I always hunt in the water," Vidal said. "Some people don't do this because they're scared to get in the water with the alligators. "I found one of the biggest advantages is to get as far away from the boat as possible and hide yourself in one of the clumps of sawgrass. You've got to really hide yourself."

Maret makes sure he chooses a clump where the sun will be at his back and he's positioned so that when he shoots ducks, they fall in open water in front of him, rather than in the sawgrass.

"That's what separates people coming back with a story rather than a limit of ducks," Maret said.

Steve Waters can be reached at swaters@sun-sentinel.com

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REGULATIONS

Season: The 2007-08 duck season is Nov. 17-25 and Dec. 8-Jan. 27. The Youth Waterfowl Hunting Days for children under 16 are Feb. 2-3.